How to start a T-shirt Business: Picking a Niche
So you want to start a t-shirt line, or you have some art that you want to monetize through t-shirts. That’s a good place to be. Why? Because t-shirts have become more popular as consumers, have become bolder in expressing their personalities, interests, and identities. There is a move for people to accept who they are and we can see that in Africa through the increasing expressions of pride dabbed #africarising. In Kenya, T-Shirts have become popular items to sell as we see the creative economy starting to take root. But with the popularity of the t-shirt business, there is no doubt you will be facing some stiff competition.
I have sat in my office and listened to countless young people whose dream is to start their own clothing line. And some go on to start with varying degrees of success. I always like to start our association off with a conversation to gauge their preparedness and often find out that they have common issues. So the question is; how can you start a successful t-shirt business? There are many factors, and I will tackle one at a time based on my experience at Create A tee, and borrowing ideas from the customers I have interacted with over time.
Niche:
One of the first questions I ask a tee-preneur is if they have a niche market. But what is a niche? Simply put, it’s a specialized market that attracts a specialized audience. A niche-oriented business addresses the needs that aren’t being addressed by mainstream providers. Defining your niche and target audience is key to having success in your business. While you may want to sell to everyone, picking a lucrative niche market to focus on will enable you to provide products that are truly unique so that they stand out.
So why niche?
The smaller the niche market, the more directed your efforts are and the more profitable you can sell something. For instance, if you want to sell t-shirts that have humorous captions or designs, your market will be very broad and you may find it hard to tap into that market. However, if you focus on humorous fitness t-shirts, then your market just narrowed and you will focus on fitness centers, sports clubs, etc.
Similarly, as you find a market with fewer but hungry people to sell to, the price you can charge that market goes up, so it becomes more profitable. And that’s how the world of economics goes. So yes, you will be selling to fewer people but the profit margin will be larger.
Niches are created and are discovered by identifying the requirements. These are wants and needs that are not being addressed, or that are not being addressed adequately. You then deliver a product that meets those requirements, needs, and wants. A niche could be based on many things – could be age (children, teens, young adults, seniors), gender, religious affiliations, hobbies, location, interests etc. Let’s say you are in the IT space and have creative designs on t-shirts that people in the industry would resonate with. An example of a niche audience would be young male professionals aged between 25 and 35 years working in IT companies or IT departments, urban-based, single or newly married, salary level kshs.XXX per month; let’s call a representative of this niche Martin.
With this niche in mind, you will be better placed to understand Martin, know how to serve him better, and develop marketing campaigns to reach him. After all, you know where he hangs out both physically and virtually.
Understand your niche market and existing competition:
Before scaling or starting your business, take time to figure out what is going on in the market. Take time to better understand your niche market – what Martin’s pain points are, what he looks for in tees, how often he shops for clothes, what are the trending designs in his field, where he currently shops etc.
Understand the competition as well. You might find out that there is no one catering for the needs of your niche which would be a golden opportunity for you. Perhaps the market is saturated with competition. Don’t be afraid of competition; not only does it validate the probability of your niche but it also forces you to be innovative. Challenge yourself to create new ideas that will resonate with your customers and lead them to you. Learn from your competition but DO NOT COPY!! Based on the information you get, you may decide to tweak your product and services so that you stand out.
Disclaimer: Business is always an experiment and these are pointers; there is no golden rule that guarantees success. Keep trying and tweaking with various methods and see what works out for you.
